13:01
Gaelle So
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Thinking of camping food as mostly cans of ravioli heated up on a camping stove? Well, think again. Camping cooking can be just as good as cooking at home, when you have the right equipment, ingredients and recipes on hand.

I won’t lie, we do eat some foods more often than we would usually, as they’re handy, easy and cheap (hey there pasta!). But then I personally get tired of eating always the same things, so I forced myself to be creative and take the time to ask myself “right, what else can we make here?”.

So wether you’re on a road trip, living in a van full time, or just going on a camping holiday or week-end, here are my tips and ideas, to make your camping-cooking easier, tastier, and healthier.

Planning.I’m not a big fan of planning in my kitchen, as I tend to be more an intuitive cook, and usually just open up fridge and cupboard to find an idea for lunch or dinner. I’ve never planned a whole week’s menu (apart from when I was cooking in a professional setting, where planning is necessary). But when it comes to cooking on a road trip or camping trip, it’s definitely helpful to do a bit of planning, so you only carry what you will actually need and eat. Try to plan a few days menus and make a shopping list according to that. Unless you have sufficient storage space, don’t bring too much food. Only bring or buy what you're sure you’ll eat, to avoid any waste of food, especially when it comes to fresh produce, that won’t keep for very long.

Know your basics.

Unfortunately, you won’t always have access to internet or cooking books to check out that recipe for tonight’s dinner, so it’s good to know a few basics by heart, or be comfortable with a bit of intuitive cooking. Omelette, pancakes, pasta sauce, hummus, flatbread, couscous, stir fry… Learn how to make basic dishes from scratch can be very helpful when you’re camping.

Pulses and grains are your best friends.

Stock up on different kind of grains and rice, bulgur, couscous, pasta, but also cans of chickpeas and beans. They're very easy to cook and can be used in many different ways : hummus, falafels, fajitas, nachos, chili, … They’re also very filling and nourishing.

Stock up on a few basic spices and seasonings.

Salt and pepper, of course, olive oil, a bottle of lemon juice, paprika, chili flakes, dried herbs, curry powder, vinegar, soy sauce, hot sauce, mustard.. will help you give more flavour to your dishes. Going on a very short camping trip? Just bring a few teaspoons of spices in small containers instead of the whole jar, to save space.

Think simple and quick.

You don’t want to have a stew cooking for hours on the stove. You need meals that don’t require too much preparation or cooking time -and as little dishes to clean as possible!-

Healthy snacks to go.

Nuts and dried fruits are a great healthy, nourishing, zero waste snack. Buy in bulk and make your own “trail mix”, that you can store in a jar or other container, and take with you on day trips and hikes.

Learn to live without a fridge.

There are many many things you can eat and cook that don’t require cold storage. Even if you have an eski/icebox, it won’t keep your food cold for very long. If you do buy food that require to be kept in the fridge, like cheese or yogurt, consume as soon as possible.

Have a nourishing breakfast.

Breakfast is supposed to be the most important meal of the day, and camping or being on the road shouldn't be an excuse for not having a good breakfast. It doesn't take much to make it special and filling. Check below for breakfast ideas. When you travel, your days can be quite busy and tiring, so you need to start the day with food that gives you plenty of energy for hikes and activities.

Learn to cook with the minimum utensils.

As a cooking lover, I do like having a well equipped kitchen, with everything I need. Though by living in a van (or even in Australia just in a car for a few months with my friend Elissa), I had to learn to cook with the minimum : no fancy utensils and electrical gadgets, just the essential. For 2 people, we have : 2 large plates, 3 bowls, 3 pots of different sizes, 1 strainer, 2 sets of cutlery, 1 chopping knife, a set of utensils like wooden spoon and whisk, 1 salad bowl, a few plastic containers, 1 moka coffee pot, 1 kettle, 1 grater, 1 chopping board, 1 vegetable peeler, 1 can opener. That’s about it. Doesn’t seem like much but we’re able to cook some amazing food. I did buy one “extra” utensil that I consider not essential but that in the end is helping us quite a lot : a manual food processor, perfect to make hummus and other things like that.

Prepare some food in advance.

Make some homemade bread, muesli bars, energy bars, cookies, wraps, muffins… Store them in airtight containers, they’ll keep well for a few days.

Cook from scratch.

When wandering around the supermarkets aisles, its easy to reach for ready made foods for your camping trip. Though if you try to make your food from scratch, you’ll save up a lot of money, and it’s also a good way to keep good healthy eating habits, even when on the road or camping. Prepared industrial foods are most of the time packed with food additives, added sugars, GMOs… By making you own food, you keep control on what you eat.

Hummus. You can easily make hummus without a food processor or blender, as long as you don’t mind it being chunky! You can also invest in a little manual food processor like me, it doesn’t take much space and can be very handy.

Salads. Mix any of these together, and you’re in for a delicious nutritious meal : lettuce, spinach, cucumber, tomato, zucchini, peppers, spring onions, red onion, carrots, beetroot, radish, shredded cabbage, canned beans or chickpeas or sweetcorn. For the seasoning, a simple vinaigrette made with mustard, olive oil and vinegar or lemon juice will always be perfect. Got some bread going stale? cut it into small cubes and fry them in olive oil with some dried herbs to make croutons.Pasta and vegetables. Of course, just a simple tomato sauce would do with pasta. Simple and cheap. But it’s not that hard to throw a few chopped veggies in there, to make the meal a bit healthier. Just fry some onions, zucchini, peppers, aubergine, and add them to cooked pasta and sauce.

Couscous and fried Summer vegetables

Chickpea stewVegetarian fajitas. Fry up some onion, garlic, peppers with some spices (paprika, coriander, cumin, chili, oregano), add some kidney beans or black beans and tomato paste, and fill some tortilla wraps with delicious vegetarian mexican mix. You can also serve it with nacho chips.Spanish tortilla. Fry some onions, and potatoes (sweet potato is really nice too) in a pan, and cook until tender, then pour some beaten eggs on top. Cook for a few minutes, then flip the tortilla over to cook it on the other side.Potato rösti. Grate some potato, season it with salt, pepper. Heat up some oil in a pan, add the grated potato, press it down to form a large pancake, cook for a few minutes before flipping over to cook on the other side until golden and cooked through.Couscous salad. Cook some couscous (add 1 part boiling water to 1 part couscous in a bowl, cover and let it sit for 5 minutes). Let it cool, then add some chopped vegetables to it (tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, spring onion), and season with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.Noodle vegetables stir fry. Cook the noodles of your choice and mix them with some vegetables fried with ginger, garlic and soy sauce.Veggie burgers. Grab a can of kidney beans, drain and mash them with a fork. Season with paprika, chili, salt, pepper, and form patties. Fry in a bit of olive oil in a pan, and serve with bread and salad.Chickpea wraps. Mix 1 part of chickpea flour with 1 part of water, add a bit of oil then season with a bit of salt. Cook this thin batter like pancakes or crepes, in an hot oiled pan.Spanish style rice. Fry some chopped up onion and garlic (add some cubed peppers if you have some) in some olive oil, add the rice, fry for another couple of minutes, then pour some tomato passata or chopped tomatoes in the pot, along with some water. Season with salt, pepper, paprika, dried herbs. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the rice is cooked. Add a can of corn or peas to the mix to bulk it up.Simple vegan chili. Fry some onion and garlic in olive oil. Add some chopped up peppers, a can of kidney beans. Season with salt, pepper, paprika, cumin, coriander, oregano. Add some chopped tomatoes or passata, and let it simmer for 15 minutes, Serve with rice.